Groter dan een droom

In this moving picture book, a little boy hears the voice of his elder sister who had died before he was born. At night, the two siblings set off together on a magical journey, cycling through the forest and the fields, rowing a boat and forming a special connection. The impressive composition and delicate colours of Marit Törnqvist’s illustrations support the magical realistic atmosphere of Jef Aerts’ poetic text beautifully: from the bird’s-eye view of the siblings day-dreaming in the boat together, to the moonlit night when the children fly through the air in a whirl of blue and purple hues. The night ends when the siblings visit the hospital where the sister lay ill and the graveyard where she lies buried. When the boy wakes up, he finds his bed empty and tells his mother about his special experience, which was “bigger than a dream.” Groter dan een droom is a sensitive story that is comforting without being sentimental. It won the Flemish Boekenleeuw and has already been translated into several languages.